Claire Dederer NYTimes.com November 4, 2007 To hear Thomas B. Coburn, president of Naropa University, explain the theory of contemplative
education is to grasp a simple concept. The Buddhist-inspired teaching that goes on
at this small college, he says, is aimed at giving students "a critical perspective
on their inner lives."

Summary: Over this past summer, Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado, home to the Jack Kerouac
School of Disembodied Poetics, hosted the inaugural Kerouac Festival, a three-day
event that included readings, scholarly panels, film screenings, and a gala dinner.

Summary: For many if not most members of the class of 2007, the war in Iraq has been the constant
background of their college years. And so as seniors graduated from thousands of colleges
and universities in recent weeks, the war was on the mind of many commencement speakers.
Alice Walker speaking at Naropa University's commencement was one of them.